A handful of the US's biggest internet service providers (AT&T, Verizon, Comcast, Cablevision, and Time Warner Cable) have reached an agreement with major copyright holders (like the RIAA and MPAA) to fight piracy: a "six strikes" enforcement plan.

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Nate Anderson at tech site Ars Technica breaks it down:

The result is "copyright alerts," a series of messages warning users that their (alleged) activity has been detected and that penalties could result if it continues. These notes continue repeatedly-two, three, even four warnings likely won't result in any penalties-but the scheme certainly does have a punitive component.

ISPs have agreed to institute "mitigation measures" (or, as you and I know them, punishments) based on the collected say-so of copyright holders. These measures begin with the fifth or six alert, and they may include "temporary reductions of Internet speeds, redirection to a landing page until the subscriber contacts the ISP to discuss the matter or reviews and responds to some educational information about copyright, or other measures that the ISP may deem necessary to help resolve the matter."